Leona Maguire during a Tokyo Team Ireland Announcement for Golf at the Sport Ireland Campus in Dublin. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

Patience was key as Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow battled scorching temperatures to keep their medal hopes alive on day one of the Women’s Individual Stroke Play in sweltering Tokyo.

With Kasumigaseki Country Club firming up considerably compared to the softer conditions faced by Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry last week, it was a major challenge to hit the ball close.

Despite not producing their best golf, Maguire chiseled out a level par 71 to share 23rd place, five shots behind Sweden’s Madelene Sagstrom as Meadow birdied the 16th and 17th for a 72 that left her tied 36th.

Sagstrom fired five birdies in a bogey-free 66 to lead by a shot from world No 1 Nelly Korda of the US and India’s Aditi Ashok on five-under-par.

Scores

“It was mixed,” said Maguire, made a slick 20 footer for a birdie two at the 17th to get back to level par.

“I probably didn’t give myself as many chances as I would have liked and didn’t quite have my irons dialed in, not that there was that many of them, it was mostly hybrids and woods into the greens but it was just slightly off I would say today.

“I holed a few nice putts to save pars and that. Just a little bit of fine-tuning I think this afternoon and I’ll be ready to go again tomorrow.

“I got a few bad breaks and tried to stay as patient as I could and stay strong. I could have let it get away from me today and I didn’t, so I’m happy with how I managed that.”

The Co Cavan star (26) arrived in Japan in sensational form following her closing 61 in the Evian Championship.

But she found it difficult to hit the ball close on a long and firm course, dropping a shot at the 202 yard fourth before getting that back with a 79-yard wedge to three feet at the fifth.

She then dug deep on the back nine and felt she could have had a little more rub of the green as she followed bogeys at the 11th and 16th with birdies at the 14th and 17th for her 71.

“I think it's fine for today,” she said of her score. “I don't see anybody getting away from us today. There's a few tricky pins there and it's set up longer than the men's like for us women, we have a lot longer clubs.

“So it's just a case of trying to take your chances on the shorter holes and there's some really tough par-4s out there that the par is a really good score. So I felt like I was a little unlucky in spots there was a couple of shots that were maybe a foot or two off and got punished for them. So hoping for a few better breaks tomorrow.

“I didn't get the height of my irons today, but I made some good pars when I needed to to keep the momentum going and keep myself in it, which was the most important thing on the first day.

“I stayed patient and it was nice to pick up a birdie at 17 and finish with a good par on 18.”

The sweltering temperatures are a challenge for the entire field but she’s taken steps to prepare as well as possible.

“We’ve been doing hot baths and stuff for a few months now,” she explained. “This was kind of a continuation of a few events in the heat but this is the hottest we’ve had this year. I use slushy drinks and ice, it’s a whole combination of things before, during and after your round. After is going to be the key to recovery with the quick turnarounds.”

Aware you can’t win it on Thursday, she went on: “I don't think you'll ever turn your nose up at level par. These are the best golfers in the world. I think there's only like two out of the top-30 that isn't here. This is good, the strongest field we'll get all year.

“So I mean you're going to have to play incredibly good golf to win this week to even get a medal this week. It's still only my first full year on the LPGA, there's a lot of girls that have a lot more experience under their belt than me.

“So I'm trying to do as well as I possibly can this week and if it's good enough for a medal it's good enough. And if it's not, I still have a big year ahead of me.”

Meadow (29) turned in one-over after a bogey at the sixth, then dropped shots back to back at the 10th and 11th to slip to three-over before fighting back with birdies at the 16th and 17th.

“I was three-over coming in for the last few holes and knew if I could get a couple coming in I would keep myself somewhere around the mark,” Meadow said. “Thankfully I made two putts but I did not have my best stuff today.

“It is very hot, there is a lot going on, just trying to keep going and hopefully try to shoot better tomorrow.”

Both golfers got advice from McIlroy and Lowry at the weekend but conditions are so different, it’s a case of back to the drawing board.

“The course is starting to firm up for us and they had a lot of rain early in the week,” Meadow said. “I could hardly put my tee in the ground to repair a pitch mark right now. So some of the advice has gone out the window but as always it’s always great to talk to Rory or Shane, who are the best at what they do and I can always learn from them.”

Pleased with the recent turnaround in her form, Meadow added: “Things are starting to click but I just didn’t have my irons today. I had a lot of left misses so I might go to the range, depending on how I feel once I sit down but I have a fair idea what’s going on.”

Twenty-two players broke par but leader Sagstrom believes the heat is the key factor for the next three days as Yuka Saso’s caddie suffered from a heat stroke and had to be replaced.

“It's hot,” she said. “I'm not going to lie, it's very hot. But it's manageable. I know I mean most of us have been in Asia, played a lot of golf over here so we know kind of what to do, you drink a lot of water you have cooling towels, umbrellas, kind of just maintaining the energy and not go crazy.

“I think at this point it's harder for the caddies than it is for the players, so it's more about making sure they're staying upright.”

Meadow tees off in her second round at 00:52 (Irish time) tonight with Maguire off at 01.47am.